Improvement in electric lights



M. DAY, lr.

. Electric Lights.

No.l56,0l5.

y Patented 0ct.20,1874`. i5- L UNITED STATES PATENT OEEicEJ MATTHIAS DAY, JR., OF MANSFIELD, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO SEELY St STEVENS, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

IMPROVEMENT IN ELECTRIC LIGHTS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 156,015, dated October 20, 1874; application iiled May 28, 1874.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MATTHrAs DAY, Jr., of lVIansficl-d,n county of Richland and State oi' Ohio, have invented Improvements in Apparatus for Producing Electric Lights, of which the following is a speciiication, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forining part thereof.

Figure 1 is au end or edge elevation of my improved apparatus. Fig. 2 is a side elevation ci' the same.

Upon the 24th day of February, 1874, Letters Patent of the United States, No. 147,827, were issued to me for improvement in electric lights. My present invention relates to certain improvements upon the apparatus described and claimed in the Letters Patent referred to; and consists, rst, in sii'npliiying the mechanism by which the carboiis or points are caused to approach one another automatically; second, dispensing with a portion of the circuit-wire there used, and utilizing themetallic parts of the apparatus itself for the transmission ofthe battery-current 5 an d, third, providing for the adjustment of the upper carbon-points by means of a universal-joint coniiection between the main standard andthe arin or bracket upon which the carbons are mounted.

A is a hollouT metal pillar fixed in a suitable wooden base, B. Cis a sliding metal standard fitted into the pillar A, upon the side of which standard, at the lower end, are cogs, constituting it a rack, indicated by the dotted lines D. E isa bar fitted to slide in guideways in the ends of the brackets or arms FF attached to the pillar A. Upon the top of this bar is mounted a helix-magnet, G, upon the upper end of the core of which is secured a socket, I-I, for holding the carbon a a with the spring b. I is a revolving drum in which is coiled a spring by which the drum is rotated. The tendency of this spring is to revolve the drum, and thereby revolve the gear-wheel J; at the same time to carry upward the bar E attached to the drum by the cord or rubber c. The gearwheel J engages with the rack D, and acts to raise and lower the standard C. K is the socket for the upper carbon-points held by the arm L, the opposite end of which has a universal j oint (ball and socket) connection with the upper end of the standard O, the ball being on the end of said standard, and the socket formed in two sections, the lower one, c, being of one piece with the arm L, and the upper section, c', being screwed to the lower.

For the purpose of forming conveniently a tight joint, a small bit of cork or rubber, s, may be let into the inner surface of the upper section, which, when the sections are screwed together, shall press upon the ball and cause friction. N is a rubber tube upon the pillar A, which serves to insulate the said pillar, standard O, arm L, and the carbon-points a a from the other parts. M M are the coils of an electro-magnet, and the bar E, being made of soft iron, forms its armature. The course of the electric current through this apparatus, and over the carbon-points, is as follows: Through the wire f to the binding-screw fi fixed in the base of the metal pillar A; thence through the said pillar, the standard O, arm L, socket K, to the upper carbon-points a ed; thence across to the lower carboirpoints a a, and back to the other battery-wire, s', through the socket H, wire-spring b, the coil of the magnet G, the wire ot' which connects with the washer la, which is insulated from the core of the magnet, but connected with the arm k, and thus with the bar E, the current passing on through this bar and arm F, through the coil of the spools M M, one end of the coil being attached to the said arm at i, and the other running to the binding-screw u; thence to the battery over the wire s. The wire of the spring b is preferably flattened, as shown, in order that the wire may be of sufficient size to conduct the current Without objectionable resistance, and at the same time be sufficient] y ways be stationary in the focus ofthe lens or mirror.

The operation is as follows: The set-screw t being loosened, the drum I will act to lift the bar E, and with it the lower carbon-points a a.. At the same time the gear J, bein grevol ved from left to right, will carry down the standard (l, and with it the upper carboii-points a a', the proportions ot' the several parts being such that the movements of the two sets of carbonpoints are commensurate to their waste, respectively. Now, the battery-current being turned on, it is evident that as soon as the points are brought into contact, thus permitting the current to pass from one to the other, the coils M M, acting as a magnet, will attract the bar E to their cores and arrest the movement 5 then whenever the transmission of the current is so far lessened by the consumption ot' the carbon-points, and consequent widening ot' the space between them, that the force of the druin-sprin g I overbalances the force of the magnet M M, the points will again move toward each other until the current again passes suiiicient to increase the force ot' the said magnet, so as to hold the bar E against the stress of the spring of the drum I, and thus, practically, annit'orm distance between the points, and consequently a steady light, is maintained.

rlhe office, and operation of the helix-magnet G and its core G are fully described in my former patent, hereinbet'ore mentioned, to which reference is made.

It is importantthat the carbon-points should have a convenient lateral adjustability, in order that they may be kept in exact apposition.

To this end I have provided a universal-joint v connection between the arm L and the sta-ndard C, by which means the points a a are adjustable laterally in all directions.

In place of using a spring in the drum I as a motor to revolve the gear J, and raise the bar E, a weight may be employed with a cord wound upon the drum I 5 or, when the apparatus is used in a vertical position, the weight of the standard C with its attached parts may itself be used as the motor, in place of a spring or weight, as above described.

1 claim as my inventionl. In an apparatus for producing electric light, the combination, with the motor I, and the carbon-electrodes a a', of sliding bar E, the magnet M M, the gear J, the standard C, as and for the purpose specified.

2. The combination, in an electric-light apparatus, of the circuit-wires, and the pillar and standard A C, the `arm L, the spring b, the bar E, and arm F, whereby the metallic parts of the appara-tus itself are employed in place of line-wires for the transmission of the batterycurrent over the carbon vpoints, as specified.

3. rIhe combination, in an electric-light apparatus, of the carbon-points, arranged point to point, and made relatively adjustable by means of a universal joint, as and for the purpose specified.

Wit-ness my hand this 23d day of l\lay,187l.

M. DAY, J R. Witnesses I. l?. FITCH, B. S. CLARK. 

